Kennedy Western University

This diploma mill was shut down several years ago, but the "degrees" are still in circulation, as a cursory look through LinkedIn or other sites will show. The unaccredited school changed locations several times, and names once as Kennedy Western University / Warren National University. The most detailed information about this business can be found in a Senate Diploma Mill investigation titled "Bogus Degrees and Unmet Expectations, Are Taxpayer Dollars Subsidizing Diploma Mills" I personally applied to the PhD program with a real MBA. Based on a brief conversation with their staff, they waived over 50% of the course requirements based on "life experience". This was consistent with the findings in the Diploma Mill investigation. The coursework for a PhD was laughable and I cut my losses after only a small $$ investment.

I graduated from KWU in 2002 with PhD in Healthcare Administration. I had previously earned a BSN, and MSN from a large accredited university. I was also a registered nurse. I had a strong desire to earn a PhD. I applied to KWU and as others have stated, took a test and supplied information on previous academic experiences. I worked for my PhD and learned more that I actually thought I would since I had never experienced on line course work. The faculty member that served as my advisor was employed at a well respected university and was a great help to me. Earning a PhD served as a valuable tool in my profession. I performed a research study in diabetes and completed my desertion using the research results. My regret is that I did not follow the advice of my advisor to have the desertion published. I could never have accomplished earning a PhD without the online corse from KWU. We must keep in mind that KWU was brave as a pioneer in virtual learning. There were few, if any virtual learning programs in the 1990s. Let us applaud this group of professionals who had the courage to step up and take advantage of technology for advanced learning. I worked full time while earning my PhD. I studied and did my classwork in the evenings and on weekends. This took discipline,integrity, and many long hours. I feel like I did offer something to the community and to the people who have diabetes by my efforts by improving knowledge and passing that on to others. I will have to admit that when the news came out about KWU being a diploma mill, I was reluctant to tell anyone where I earned my PhD. After reading the good reviews about KWU, I felt strongly that I should write this review. Congratulations to those of us who will stand up for a school that for whatever reason closed. I will never be ashamed of saying that I received my PhD from KWU. Betty Powell Sherouse, PhD

I do not regret getting a PhD from KWU. I got what I paid for. I do not list it on my resume because I know it is not accepted but I still make reference to the fact that I have a PhD in healthcare administration. I did study and I did learn. I already had a B.A., an A.S. and a M.P.A. from accredited universities. I am a nurse by profession therefore the courses I took at KWU were very apropos. This experience is what opened the door for me to study quantum mechanics and move on to other subjects. I believe that there are really no mistakes in life. Rather there are stepping stones to other dimensions.

If a former student ever comments that their experience was excellent and the school curriculum challenged them with a complete and comprehensive educational experience, then you have to assume the student never really experienced a true, top 50 postgraduate program before going through this online program. I completed an Executive MBA program in 1995 at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, LA. That program was very flexible and fit my professional schedule because classes were held on campus every other weekend. A lot of information was crammed into 19 months but I feel the experience was both challenging and academically satisfying to me. In 2005 I enrolled in Kennedy Western's PhD Health Care Administration Program. The online program was very flexible and was really the only way I could ever receive a PhD in my feild of practice at this stage of my professional career. Although it was the only way I ever want to or could ever go through a PhD program, I have to admit that the program was just a general overview of postgraduate health care administration material. It contained only the basic material needed to be considered postgraduate work. I did not finish the program because I had one final course to complete and then I needed to finish my dissertation. I wish I would have finished the program just to get the degree, but in all honesty, I would never have felt that I had earned a legitimate PhD. It was basically a review of material that touched on several areas of management and health care, but would have only been a few steps up from purchasing a PhD online, such as those bogus degree purchase programs that are offered online all of the time.

I recently completed a Masters degree program with Warren National University and thought the program was amazing.... The faculty and staff were very supportive and always ready to help. I thought the materials were very comprehensive and directly related to my position in hospital administration. My current employer has been interested in my studies from day one, they have also reviewed the curriculum on several occasions and were very pleased with the length and breadth of the materials. This was a fantastic experience and I'm proud to have graduated from such a comprehensive program.

After they did a hard sell and had me sign the payment plan...everyone became nearly impossible to reach, then the name changed. Everytime I tried to contact someone to find out what was happening, what the next step was-I never received a reply. The 'degree' is long paid for, and now their web site states they are not accepting or 'reactivating' students....and they still have not responded to calls and emails. What a major $$ rip off!

3 weeks into my courses, and my loan, we had a sudden and major illness in my family that prevented me from continuing my courses. After many requests for a refund I was denied....I was the sucker....they were simply heartless.

Yes, I've read the fake degree testimony, yes, I know it is an unaccredited "university" and is generally ridiculed. But... for an individual course, the text wasn't too bad as a self-study continuing education item. If you leave it at that, I think you can find some value here. try finding a Doctoral Level Healthcare Admin course, the field is pretty limited.